Right Person, Wrong Time

Chapter 750

Nicole felt a headache beginning to form when she saw how the two men refused to give in to the other. Eventually, she shrugged them both off and turned to look at Zachary.

"Zach, I need to clear things up with him. Wait for me here," she said seriously.

Zachary's expression twisted slightly before it smoothed out, but he didn't say anything in protest. Instead, he only smiled and said softly, "Okay, Nicky. I'll wait for you here."

When Colton saw how 'loving' they were behaving, he felt upset. Even so, he never brought any attention to his displeasure.

Nicole wiped her tear-stained face and turned to look at Colton. Then, she said calmly, "Let's go."

She brought him to a secluded place behind the hospital, and when she saw that no one was around, she raised her eyes and asked, "President Gardner, let's not beat around the bush and just say what you want to say."

Colton's dark eyes stared into Nicole's as if trying to find something besides cool regard. Then, he reached out, grabbed her wrist, and asked, "Why were you hugging him?"

She knew he was talking about the hug between her and Zachary. She didn't want to explain how that happened and deflected, "I don't think that's any of your business. Is there anything else you would like to say, President Gardner?"

When he noticed how distant she was, his eyes dimmed as he gave her hand a squeeze.

"Nicky, I told you this before. I don't care about what other people think. I like you. I want to be with you."

Nicole lowered her gaze at his firm hold on her limp hand. Maybe he could afford to ignore other people's judgment, but she couldn't!

She turned to look at him again and slowly said with a polite smile, "President Gardner, it doesn't matter whether you care about it since it has nothing to do with me. As I said, I don't have the slightest feelings for you. We were just using each other before this. Now that there's no mutual benefit in our relationship, there's no point in continuing it any further."

Colton shook with barely restrained anger at her insensitive remarks. Then, he grabbed her chin and inched closer to her. Right as his lips were about to meet hers, she turned away. In the end, he planted a kiss on her cheek instead.

A trace of pain flashed across his eyes at her actions. She twisted the knife further as her next sentence dripped with venom, "Mr. Gardner, as the president of Gardner Corporation, you shouldn't do such shameless things like forcing a kiss on someone."

His dark eyes never left her face. He reached up and pulled her chin back to face him, making her look square in his face.

"You said that you liked me before. What happened to my grandmother isn't your fault. You don't have to blame yourself!"

Even though she was forced to face him, she tried her best to remain indifferent and said ruthlessly, "I'm not blaming myself. I just really never liked you!"

Nicole's voice was firm, which made him falter. She stretched out her hands to shove Colton away, then continued coldly, "President Gardner, you shouldn't pour all your love on someone who doesn't like you. Of course, I won't have any objections if you want to meet Hayden. But other than that, there is nothing between you and me!"